Do you want to see your law firm appear at the top of Google’s search results? You need a strong link-building strategy to make it happen.
The legal niche has become highly competitive in the last few years, with thousands of businesses offering the same services.
Don’t take our word for it; you can see for yourself – simply type “law firm” on Google and see the countless lists of results.
If you want to make your business visible among all the other websites, link building for lawyers is the key.
While law firms can choose many other digital marketing techniques (content marketing, paid advertisements, and social media marketing), contextual link-building services prove to be really effective.
Continue reading if you want to know more about link building for lawyers and how to implement it.
What is Link Building?
Link building simply means getting other websites to link to your own site. Getting links from reputed and relevant pages shows Google that your website can be trusted. This helps to increase your site’s reputation, authority, and ranking.
Google’s latest algorithm takes backlinks into consideration when determining a web page’s relevance and authority. You can easily drive more people to your law firm’s website by creating high-quality links.
The Purpose of Link Building for Law Firms
Link building is an important part of SEO for lawyers. It serves to improve your law firm’s SEO performance, increase audience outreach, and build industry connections. Fundamentally, it revolves around establishing meaningful connections.
Multiple high-quality backlinks on a website convey credibility and relevance to search engines like Google, often resulting in higher rankings on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
However, link building for lawyers is not just aboout increasing ranking. Its essence lies in broadening your audience base and attracting traffic from various different sources.
When a site with substantial following links back to yours, its audience holds the potential to become your loyal visitors, thereby boosting your brand awareness.
Moreover, link building helps you to build professional connections within the industry. Mutual linking often marks the beginning of a professional rapport, potentially leading to further collaborations and partnerships.
However, not all links carry equal weight. Search engines prioritize quality over quantity. Links from reputable and relevant websites hold more value than numerous links from indiscriminate sources. A backlink stemming from a site in the same or a related industry typically holds greater significance than a link from an entirely unrelated site.
Link Building for Lawyers: 15 Best Techniques
Here are some techniques and best practices that we found effective in link building for law firms:
1. Create good quality content
To benefit from link building for lawyers, you have to start with creating quality content for your law firm’s website. Quality content serves as the destination for these incoming links. It should be engaging, helpful, and deserving of links from other sites.
This kind of content, often called “link-worthy,” isn’t self-promotional. It must provide value to readers. For instance, simply announcing an award your legal team received won’t attract much attention. However, a detailed blog post explaining how to maximize a car accident claim in 3,000 words would help.
For content to be link-worthy, it should either be highly relevant and newsworthy or evergreen. Timely pieces could include blog posts discussing recent actions by a political figure. Evergreen content, like an infographic highlighting the benefits of hiring a personal injury lawyer, also holds value.
2. Guest posting
Guest posting is another effective technique you can use for link building for lawyers. It means you have to write and share content on someone else’s website and get a link back to their own site. This could involve teaming up with other lawyers, business owners, or industry groups.
To do guest posting right, you have to choose only reputable websites. It is best to start with people you already know and have good relations with. You also need to follow the right guidelines when writing the guest post to meet the requirements. When you write the post, remember to add your link within the first few hundred words.
The websites you choose for guest posting must be related to your niche. Once you shortlist the sites, reach out to them and propose content collaborations.
Remember, there should be mutual benefits in any collaboration beyond just money. When choosing where to post, check the site’s background and relevance to your field. If possible, try linking to related resources or sites.
When creating content, think about what your audience wants. Make your content detailed, helpful, and insightful. Guest posting isn’t just about getting your name out there – it’s about offering valuable content to the right audience.
3. Lawyer-specific directories
Apart from using websites for guest posting, you also take advantage of free directories when it comes to link building for lawyers. Law firm directories work like the old Yellow Pages but online. They’re lists of websites specifically for lawyers. These directories can be free, paid, or have a one-time fee.
Some legal directories hold a lot of authority. They allow law firms to share contact details as well as links to their websites. You can add the details about your website to these directories to create a backlink.
However, before you pick a directory, check its credibility based on the ratings. Make sure the directory is well-maintained without any broken links or missing images. You also need to be cautious about listing your site in directories that seem low-quality or suspicious.
If you are adding your link to a pair directory, it usually involves filling out a form, making a payment, and getting reviewed before your site is listed. Free directories have a simpler process with the only difference of making the payment. You just have to fill out the form and wait for the review to be done.
4. Become a resource for journalists
Journalists and bloggers often need expert opinions to add credibility to their stories. If you can offer this expertise, you might get a backlink to your site.
In the past, journalists had their go-to sources for quotes or insights on news like new laws or ongoing court cases. While building relationships with journalists is still valuable, platforms, like Help a Reporter Out (HARO) have made it easier for anyone to contribute to stories by connecting sources with journalists.
Here’s how HARO works:
- Sign up as a source on their website.
- They send emails three times a day with requests from journalists. You can choose which ones you want to get.
- If you see a request that fits your expertise, click for more details and respond.
Here are some key tips for using HARO for link-building for lawyers:
- Respond quickly to requests
- Follow the given instructions
- Only respond if you have genuinely useful insights
- Don’t limit yourself to just law-related topics
- Look for posts that collect different opinions
- Write your responses well to minimize the need for editing
5. Link building for lawyers on Reddit
Reddit is a social forum where you can discuss almost any topic, including law-related discussions. Link-building here means establishing yourself as a trustworthy user and sharing links to your website’s resources when relevant. As a lawyer, you can post links or text posts with hyperlinks.
When using Redding, you need to avoid simply dropping links without engaging first. Be an active and helpful member of the community, and then start building links.
To boost your credibility, you should answer legal questions and contribute to discussions daily. Also, it is important to get involved in various discussions, not just legal ones. Commenting on other posts can also help you create a good base.
Remember, Reddit communities dislike spam. Posting too many self-promotional links can lead to a quick ban. So, it’s crucial to offer value first. By helping Reddit users and naturally incorporating links to your website’s resources, you can create longer-lasting links.
To get started, create a Reddit account and fill out your profile. Then, engage by participating in discussions and sharing useful information. Keep the focus on being helpful rather than selling yourself or your services.
6. Community mentions
Community mentions are an easy way to get backlinks. You just ask people in your network or those you’ve worked with before to link to your website. It’s a simple way to get relevant links for the work you’ve already done.
Here are some situations where asking for a link might make sense:
- If a client writes a blog post mentioning your firm, you can ask them to add a link to your site.
- Offer testimonials to businesses you’ve worked with and ask them to link to your site when they use your testimonial.
- When you collaborate with others, agree to write about the partnership on both your websites and include a link.
- If your firm attends an event, you might get a backlink when they mention your participation.
7. Review link building for lawyers
Testimonial or review Link building for lawyers is about giving your thoughts on products or services you’ve used and getting links in return. When you write reviews or testimonials for stuff you’ve tried, some companies might link back to your website as a thank-you.
Not all sites allow this, but many have a spot where you can leave a URL when you write a review. Even if they don’t link, showing appreciation might lead to future collaborations.
Think about any service your firm uses, like office supplies or cleaning services, and ask if you can leave a review on their site. You can use your homepage link, as other links might seem suspicious to site owners.
8. Offer a scholarship
Another effective technique for link-building for lawyers is providing a scholarship. It can get you many links from respected educational websites. While this strategy can be costly, it will give you backlinks from high-authority websites.
You can start by creating a page on your website announcing the scholarship. Then, let nearby colleges and relevant publications know about it. These places are usually happy to link to your site since the scholarship helps students.
Before you use this technique, make sure you consider a few things like,
- The amount you will offer: Look at other similar scholarships to figure out an appropriate amount. Decide if this fits your link-building plans.
- Backlink opportunities: Check out local universities and their scholarship pages. Note which links are followed or nofollow, and make a list of where you’ll reach out.
- Scholarship criteria: Decide how you’ll pick who gets the money and if you have time to review applications.
- Benefits of scholarship: While it gets you links, think of other ways it can help your law firm, like in marketing or hiring.
9. Legal article contribution
Legal article contribution involves creating content that addresses specific legal queries, serving as an educational resource on particular legal matters. Some well-known legal directories offer this service.
However, only a handful of websites, like lawyer.com and personalinjury.com, let you add a dofollow link back to your website. So, watch out for sites that won’t provide a dofollow link to your site.
Link to the most relevant article on your site when contributing. For instance, if you’re discussing car accident legalities, link to the relevant landing page. Many lawyers tend to link back to their home page, but linking to a specific page helps the reader better.
10. Unlinked mentions
Finding unlinked mentions is an easy way to get more links to your website. Usually, when other websites talk about your business, they’ll link to your site. But sometimes, they forget. If you notice this, you can ask for a link.
Here’s how to use it for link building for lawyers:
Use Google Alerts to get emails whenever someone mentions your firm in an article.
Check if the article links to your site. If not, send a quick message thanking them for the mention and kindly ask for a link.
11. Use niche edits link building for lawyers
Niche edits involve reaching out to a website and asking them to add a link to your page in their article if it fits well. Sometimes, they’ll agree if they see value in your link, and they might ask for payment.
This method can get you many backlinks fast because you don’t need to create new content. It’s a repeatable strategy, but your budget and how many sites agree to add your link limit it.
You can use this for pages that don’t usually get links. But there are risks. Google doesn’t like paid links, so your site might get penalized in search rankings. To avoid this, use niche edits as just one part of your link-building plan.
12. Answer questions on Quora
Quora is a popular website where people ask questions, and others answer them. You might have heard that answering questions there can help build links to your website. Here’s the deal:
Answering questions on Quora won’t directly give you backlinks that boost your site’s ranking. The links there are what’s called “nofollow,” which means they don’t have the usual benefits of links from trusted sites.
However, answering questions related to your audience could still bring attention to your site and increase traffic. It can also help you get other valuable links and even lead to more direct conversions.
So, while Quora might not boost your ranking directly, it can still be valuable for your website in other ways.
13. Podcasts and interviews
As a lawyer, your knowledge is valuable, and people want to hear from you. Make the most of this by offering yourself for interviews.
Besides reaching out to journalists through HARO, it’s a good idea to connect with podcasters, too. Getting interviewed by a popular podcaster boosts your visibility and gets you backlinks. It is one of the most unique ways to link building for lawyers and adds variety to your links.
14. Sponsorship opportunities
Sponsorship opportunities allow law firms and attorneys to support various organizations or charity events. These groups often have websites where links can be placed. It’s a way to use existing relationships for SEO benefits.
There are highly authoritative sponsorship opportunities available, but they might come with a significant cost. So, you need to consider the ROI before using this tactic.
Sponsoring for links can be seen as a grey area between good and bad SEO practices. While donations are usually to support a cause, some might view it as a link scheme, which
Google doesn’t allow.
15. Collaborate with a link-building specialist
As an attorney, your day is already packed with all the legal work. Writing content, building a link building strategy, and reaching out might not fit into your schedule.
So, rather than tackling link building alone, you can team up with a link building specialist. They use ethical methods to boost your law firm website online without eating into your time.
Link Publishers is a link building company that specializes in guest posting. It is an online platform where you can easily buy and sell high-quality guest posts at affordable rates. They also offer guest posts that you can use for link building for lawyers.
How to Build Links for Lawyers?
When it comes to link building for lawyers, you have four different options to choose from.
1. Adding links
You can place links on your site from other websites manually, for instance, on online directories or social media profiles. These links are okay but might not have a huge impact on your site’s ranking.
2. Asking for links
Requesting links from other sites is common but not always successful. Often, these requests get ignored or marked as spam by website owners.
3. Buying links
Purchasing links is frowned upon by Google and can lead to penalties. It’s against their policies and might harm your website’s reputation.
4. Earning links
Creating valuable content that people naturally want to link to is the best approach. This could include appearing on podcasts, making newsworthy content, or crafting useful tools. The more people know about your content, the more likely they are to link to it.
What Makes a Good Backlink?
To check if a backlink is good, look at six things:
Organic traffic
A better way to measure a website’s strength than just looking at its domain authority is to check its organic traffic. When a website gets a lot of visitors from Google, it means Google trusts and finds it valuable.
Relevance
Getting links from pages related to your content is better than getting them from unrelated ones. Google’s patents suggest they consider page relevance when deciding how much importance to give it in their ranking system.
Anchor Text
Google has mentioned the importance of anchor text relevance in its ranking systems. A relevant anchor text explains what your page is about or what someone might find by visiting it.
Placement & Features
How and where the link appears on a page matters. Your link should be placed in the article in a strategic way. It is best to add it in the first few hundred words where people can easily find it.
Follow vs. Nofollow Links
Some links have tags like nofollow. They don’t pass authority to your page. So, make sure you add follow links as they serve as strong signals that another website supports or recommends your website.
Destination
It’s easier to get links to helpful content than sales pages. People don’t like being sold to. So, focus on getting links to useful pages and linking them to your sales pages.
What Gives a Backlink It’s Worth?
Link building for lawyers remains effective, but there’s a catch: You’ve got to follow the rules. Google emphasizes the distinction between high-quality and low-quality backlinks.
Low-quality backlinks don’t just lack value – they can harm your law firm’s website and impact its SEO rankings. These bad links often stem from irrelevant or untrustworthy sources, including penalized websites or those unrelated to your law firm’s focus. They might also use spammy anchor text and overly optimized keywords.
On the flip side, high-quality backlinks come from authoritative sources that relate to your website and law firm. They seamlessly blend into the content and offer real value to readers.
When you focus on getting these high-quality backlinks, your law firm can reap substantial benefits from a link building strategy. In fact, it’s one of the most reliable investments when it comes to link building for lawyers.
Is Link Building for Lawyers Still Effective?
There’s a strong connection between the number of backlinks to a page and its Google rankings, according to data from Ahrefs.
When it comes to digital marketing, law firms have an array of strategies at their disposal: SEO, social media, content marketing, PPC advertising, and more.
Yet, if you seek an organic method blending SEO and content, look no further than link building for your SEO strategy.
Contrary to some beliefs, link-building for lawyers remains potent, especially for those aiming for extensive reach and engagement.
A few years back, a Google Search Quality Senior Strategist revealed that among Google’s top-ranking factors were content and links. Given no significant changes, we continue to consider links crucial for SEO rankings and online visibility in search engines.
Conclusion
The growing competition in the law firm niche can affect your business badly, even if you provide top-quality services. To reach more people and create a positive brand image, you need to invest in link-building for lawyers.
It is one of the most effective SEO techniques and provides long-term results. By following the tactics and strategies we have listed in this guide, you can easily build quality links to improve your site authority and ranking.
FAQs
What are the three main methods for link building?
HARO (Help a Reporter Out), industry statistics posts, and guest blogging are the three main link-building methods.
What is important in link building?
In link building, it is important to focus on quality and building relationships.
When should I start link building?
You should start link building 3 to 4 months after buying a domain.
Do lawyers really need backlinks?
If you want to increase the ranking of your law firm’s website, backlinks are a great option.
